Radio

During the 1860's, Scottish Physicist James Clerk Maxwell predicted the existence of radio waves. And in 1886 the German Physicist Heinrich Rudolph Hertz demonstrated that rapid variations of electric current could be projected into space in the form of radio waves similar to those of light and heat. In 1866, Mahlon Loomis, an American dentist, successfully demonstrated "wireless telegraphy." Loomis was able to make a meter connected to one kite cause another one to move, marking the first known instance of wireless aerial communication. Guglielmo Marconi, an Italian inventor, proved the feasibility of radio communication. He sent and received his first radio signal in Italy in 1895. By 1899 he flashed the first wireless signal across the English Channel and two years later received the letter "S", telegraphed from England to Newfoundland. This was the first successful transatlantic radiotelegraph message in 1902.

Radio operators fall into three broad categories: publicly-funded radio, commercial radio and the community and voluntary radio sector - from well-established student and hospital radio to the most recently licensed community radio stations. The industry has been growing steadily in recent years and now employs over 22,000 people (more than terrestrial TV) in a wide range of occupations. Employers range in size from the BBC and larger commercial radio groups to not-for-profit community radio stations run mainly by volunteers.

Photo Imaging

The total Photo Imaging workforce comprises around 43,100 people. 51% of these are based in the south of England, with the largest proportion - some 38% - in London and the South East. The rest of the workforce is spread throughout Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the remaining regions of England, with the highest concentrations in the South West (13%) and the East of England (12%). The Photo Imaging industry is made up of 8,700 companies, two thirds (68%) of which are sole trading or freelance photographers. The remaining companies can be broadly divided into the following categories: •Image producers (including laboratories and minilabs) •Photo retail •Picture libraries and agencies •Manufacturers •Support services (e.g. equipment hire and repair)

Publishing

Publishing is made up of a variety of industurys including; Books, Newspapers, Magazines, Directories, Mailing Lists, Journals, Business Media, News Agencies and various other information services. From printed words to online, the occupations and roles in this industury are varied and many people are involved. Whether a Journalist,commissioning editor, designer or Advertising executive, multimedia formats mean the industury is an excting time at the moment and a subject to rapid change.

Famous publisers include: - Books (Collins, Ladybird, Puffin, BBC Books) - Magazines (Conde Nast,Jacyln. B. Jarret) - Newspapers (Guardian, Eddy Harnstein) The publishing Industury generates a turnover in the reigon of £10.1 billion GVA (Gross Value Added) and is one of the biggest earners and exporters for the UK Creative Media Industurys. The industry consists of a majority of small companies: 88% of them having less than 10 employees. Yet the 3% with 200 or more employees have over half of all those working in the industry on their payroll. The main geographical area of employment is London and the South East. The East of England is next, followed by the South West, Scotland and the North West. In Wales and Northern Ireland the sector is predominately made up of small publishers and news media.

Interactive Meda

The interactive media industry is a very fluid sector with many overlaps with, and blurred distinctions between, other sectors. In particular, as interactive media products become more sophisticated, their development increasingly has greater overlap with the software and IT sector. As convergence gathers pace, the boundaries between interactive media and other forms of digital media become yet more blurred - particularly as television broadcasters look to multi-platform, ‘360 degree' commissioning models. 

In a rapidly evolving industry, any definition of it risks quickly becoming out of date.Interactive media itself is a vague and often misunderstood term. We must look not just at what the sector does and who does it, but also at other stakeholders who operate in the grey area at its fringes, as well as considering those who use its products. The market for interactive media contributes to a number of significantly larger markets. This is taking into account those who enable it, buy from it and, in turn, are enabled or supported by it. 

The biggest of these are e-commerce and online advertising. The UK's interactive media industry is worth several billion pounds annually, but its products support a far larger economy.Definition of the sector is difficult not only because of the pace of change, but also because there are many companies and individuals involved in interactive media who more accurately fit within other sectors. In many ways it is not so much a sector as a discipline, as its creation and use is increasingly becoming part of everyday activity across all sectors of industry in general. 

Gaming

The first games were launched in the 1960s. By the 1970s there was a recognised Games Industry with video arcades and home entertainment consoles. Home computing got big in the 1980s and brought a period of huge expansion and creative innovation. Games became an industry, and moved away from 2 or 3 talented, devoted creative “mavericks” being responsible for every aspect of a project. Developing top of the range Computer Game titles now involves large teams of people, and costs millions of pounds. 

It begins with market research and development in national and international operations. Teams of people then work to produce design documents from which all the elements that make up the final game are drawn and which sets down all possible paths the games can take players and any of the mechanics of actual gameplay that are relevant. If the game has story or narrative elements scripting and storyboarding also takes place.

Working from this design document the technical aspects of the game are decided and the game code, animation, graphics audio production and special effects follow. The application of the technical expertise then turns the creative products into paths for gamers to enjoy. Teams work on the projects in a system of production much like producing a movie. Like movies the risk is great – the game may not grab audiences, the investors may lose money.

But like movies, Games can be successful globally, and the profit margin per unit can be far more than that per viewer for movies. Like movies games often feature well known franchises and blockbuster sequels which greatly enhance the commercial success of the sector. Sales of entertainment software outstrip the video rental market and cinema box office spending, and the growth in the software and hardware market is set to go on rising. More games are being purchased worldwide and UK companies are contributing to that success.

 

Animation

The animation Industury in the UK consists of a large workforce that stretches across many of the in the creative media industries. You will find animated content on television, in feature films, commercials, websites and computer or video games. Just over 2000 people work in animation in the UK, half of them freelance, and there are currently more than 300 companies producing a range of work. Animation is a relatively small sector that is growing in success and popularity. Flexible scheduling by broadcasters has increased opportunities for animators and the internet provides another platform for short and experimental work. Big-budget features such as Toy Story have enjoyed great commercial success and 2002 saw the introduction of the first ever Oscar for an animated feature, won by Dreamwork’s Shrek.

 

The Animation Sector is divided into four main sectors: •2D drawn or traditional; •2D computer generated •stop frame; and •3D computer generated. Most companies will concentrate on one discipline and but some studios do all four. There are a wide range of freelance, some contract, and some more permanent jobs in animation. These can be found at small production companies, larger studios, computer generated post production facility houses and at computer games developers or interactive media designers.

Animation is extremely expensive to make, labour intensive and time consuming and it can take up to two years to create and produce just 30 mintues of animation.This has placed a heavy emphasis on good project management and good teamwork; the skills shortages in this sector reflect the need for people who can adapt to busy production schedules. But balanced against this is the popularity of animation and the fact that it can easily be translated into other languages, for worldwide sales. Budgets for animated features may be in excess of $60 million, but the sale of products, such as books and toys, plus the potential for high box office returns, can usually more than compensate for the initial investment.

The UK has an excellent reputation for creativity and technology, but high production costs mean that less than 5% of the animation currently seen on our TV screens originated here. But unlike some other sectors in the creative media industries, animation has a number of distinct and highly successful centres of excellence outside London; including Bristol, Manchester and Dundee. Most of the money spent on animation is associated with the advertising industry and competition for commissions is fierce. But the UK also leads the world in the production of pre-school storytelling and design, and this area continues to attract investors. Other products include: •feature films •children’s programmes •games •music promos •titles and idents •CD-Roms (for educational purposes) •adult comedy and drama.

Film

Film

The UK's film industury is part of a constantly evolving creative media landscape. When talking about the film industury, we refer to it in six seperate parts: Development, Production, Facilites, Distribution, Exhibition and Export. The nature of the industury means production companies are often set up for specific production companies are usually set up for a specific production and the shut down The latest research shows there are around 400 'permanent'(registered) companies in the film industry, this figure varies depending on the number of productions being worked on at any one time. 

Of the companies existing today, we can say approximately 43% are production, 13% are distribution and the remaining 44% are exhibition companies.In 2006, the UK film industry contributed £4.3 billion to the UK economy, up from £3.1 billion in 2004. The UK industry is an independent creator of feature films, a co-production partner and a provider of services to the international film industry. In 2007, UK production activity was £747 million, making it the fourth highest production year on record. 

Inward investment productions including Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince and Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian and indigenous productions such as Brideshead Revisited and How To Lose Friends and Alienate People were just some of the productions made in the UK. 516 films were released across the UK in 2007, a 58% increase over the decade. UK films, including co-productions, accounted for 21% of releases and 29% of the market by value. In 2007 the UK had the largest number of digital screens in Europe at 296 screens, double the number in 2006.While it is usually the cinematic release of a film that establishes its reputation, over half the revenues of the industry in the UK come from DVD/video retail and rental.